Christie’s Falls Short of Its Pre-Sale Estimate

For the first time in four years, Christie’s fell short of its pre-sale estimate at an evening art auction. The auction house sold off $277 million worth of Impressionist and modern artworks in New York earlier tonight — more than $10 million shy of its of $287 million to $405 million estimate — in a disappointing sale that revealed further evidence of a weakening U.S. art market.

The sale, overall, achieved 82% of its expected value, with 14 of the 58 works on offer failing to find a buyer. Vincent van Gogh’s peasant view, “Route aux confines de Paris, avec paysan portant la beche sur l’epaule,” was priced to sell for at least $13 million but stalled at $11.5 million. Works by Paul Gauguin, Fernand Leger, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Kees van Dongen also failed to close a deal.

The bright spot of the sale was Claude Monet’s bridge landscape, “Le Pont du chemin de fer a Argenteuil,” which drew three bidders and ultimately sold to a telephone buyer for a record $41 million, just over its $40 million high estimate.

To win certain works like the Monet, Christie’s laid out its own money, in the form of guarantees. Of the 15 other artworks guaranteed by Christie’s, four failed to sell, including van Dongen’s sensual “Anita en almee,” which was estimated at at least $12 million. Guarantee agreements are private, but experts believe Christie’s had put down at least $19.5 million in guarantees for those four unsold lots.

Heading into the sale, Christie’s auctioneer Christopher Burge said the auction house had expected a disappointing result because buyers were nervous about lingering woes in the financial and housing markets. “By today, we had a pretty good idea that certain artworks would be difficult to sell,” Mr. Burge said.

But Christie’s chief executive Ed Dolman said he was “reassured” that bidding still proved brisk in certain areas, particularly sculptures. Indeed, the Gagosian Gallery in New York paid a record $27.4 million for Alberto Giacometti’s rain-thin depiction of a woman, “Grande femme debout II,” above its $18 million estimate. Another New York dealer, David Zwirner, lost out to a telephone bidder who paid $14.6 million for Giacometti’s ottoman-sized slab topped by five frozen figures, “La Place II.” Christie’s also broke Auguste Rodin’s auction record when it sold his graceful statue, “Eve,” for $18.9 million, well over its $12 million high estimate.

The scene at Christie’s

Records were broken for six artists, including Edouard Vuillard and Joan Miro. Vuillard’s sisterly view of two women with brightly patterned dresses, “Fillettes se promenanttes,” estimated at $7 million to $10 million, sold for $7.9 million. Miro’s red-and-blue sky view, “La caresse des etoiles,” sold for $17 million, up from its $12 million to $16 million estimate. Four years ago, the same work sold for $11.7 million.

Overall, 34 artworks still sold for more than $1 million, and 59% fell within their estimates. (Pre-sale estimates do not include the auction house’s commission, which is 20% of the first $500,000, plus 12% of the rest.) The weak dollar may have fueled some foreign bidders: About half the buyers were European, 32% were American, and 2% were Asian.

Tania Buckrell Pos, an art adviser based in London, sat in the second row and paid $11.6 million for Monet’s “Nympheas” on behalf of a European collector. After the sale, Ms. Buckrell Pos called the sale “a little slow.” “Given the credit crunch,” she said, “I think everyone is starting to hurt.” –Kelly Crow